Black Forest Specialties: Cherry Cake, Ham & More

The Black Forest is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Germany. This beautiful region lies in the southwest of the country and stretches across 11,000 square kilometres. Here, in Germany’s largest low mountain range, you can discover a great variety of landscapes.

Dense forests and wide valleys with lush meadows invite you to walk, cycle and unwind. Dreamlike hiking trails lead up to peaks as high as 1,493 metres, where no trees grow anymore.

The hospitality of the people in the Black Forest can be felt everywhere: in rustic taverns as well as in hotels and private guesthouses. Wellness is a big topic here in the southwest, and so is good food. The Black Forest is where people come to enjoy. The region’s cuisine is known all over the world. In almost every town you will find kitchens that are regularly honoured by gourmet guides. No surprise: Nowhere else in Germany do so many award-winning chefs stand at the stove as in the Black Forest. The holiday region is therefore rightly known as “Germany’s most delightful corner”.

The best-known specialties from the Black Forest are the world-famous Black Forest cake, its unique ham as well as fine fruit brandies and beers. Traditional dishes and drinks are served with great warmth, cooked, brewed and baked using regional products.

Below you will find an overview of the food and drink highlights from Germany’s southwest:

The famous Black Forest cake

It is known and loved all over the world: Black Forest cake is probably the region’s most famous product. Visually, it is said to resemble a traditional Bollenhut hat. Who invented it has not been fully clarified. According to historians, it may have been master confectioner Hildenbrand from Tübingen, who is believed to have created this heavenly cake for the first time in 1930. The secret of Black Forest cake lies in the generous amount of whipped cream and plenty of kirsch. The kirsch is distilled in the Black Forest.

Fine Black Forest kirsch

In southwest Germany, around 16,000 fruit distillers currently produce premium spirits. An estimated 12,000 of them are based in Baden-Württemberg, of which around 8,000 are located in Baden. Kirsch from the Black Forest is well known and appreciated both in Germany and abroad. But it is not only cherries that are used. All fruits that ripen in the region are processed. The art of distilling is based on age-old traditions. It is well worth not only tasting the fine liqueurs and fruit brandies from the Black Forest, but also visiting a distillery.

Delicately thin Black Forest ham

It belongs on every snack platter and is one of those Black Forest delicacies everyone should try at least once: Black Forest ham. The secret of this specialty lies in the long period it is left to dry in the fresh Black Forest air (the longer, the better) and in the way it is smoked. It develops its delicate aroma through smoking over beech or fir wood. This is also why there is no single “Black Forest ham”, but many varieties with their own subtle flavour and aroma. You will find it on the menu in every inn, from simple village pubs to gourmet restaurants.

Bibeleskäs – hearty and vegetarian-friendly

Bibeleskäs is a type of fresh cheese. The name comes from Alemannic and means quark. In the Black Forest it is served seasoned with various herbs. Bibeleskäs is made from crumbly white cheese produced from sour milk. Depending on the area, it is mixed with herbs, shallots, garlic and onions. The ingredients are finely chopped, minced or pressed and then folded into the cheese. In the past, Bibeleskäs was considered poor people’s food because all the ingredients could be found in every farm garden. Today it is a popular specialty, often served with boiled potatoes, baked potatoes or fried potatoes. Bibeleskäs fits very well into today’s healthy cuisine: it is low in fat yet rich in protein and carbohydrates.

Beer – hops and malt from the Black Forest

Beer from the Black Forest has cult status. There seem to be countless varieties brewed here. They have distinctive names such as “Inselhopf”, “Zäpfle” or “Rogg Zipfel”. Zäpfle is now regarded across Germany as a true cult beer. In the southern Black Forest, “Diplom Pils” is brewed, a beer that earned the Waldhaus private brewery the title of “world’s best pilsner”. Breweries in the Black Forest know their craft, and visitors can experience this for themselves. Some breweries not only offer tours, but also tastings and even brewing courses.

Baden wine – a sought-after fine wine

The Black Forest is also home to excellent wines. Baden is Germany’s third-largest wine-growing region, with 15,400 hectares of vineyards. A gourmet holiday without a fine glass of wine would be unthinkable in the southwest of the country. Winegrowers’ cooperatives and estates are well prepared for visitors. They are proud to show their vineyards, which benefit from ideal climatic and geological conditions for fruity, mineral-driven white wines and full-bodied red wines. More than half of the vineyard area is planted with white and red varieties of the Pinot family. In addition to Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris, varieties such as Chardonnay, Schwarzriesling, Riesling, Gutedel, Silvaner and Müller-Thurgau also thrive in the Black Forest. The Baden Wine Route runs through what is known as the “wine Black Forest” and is well worth a detour.

Tarte flambée – so versatile, so tasty

Tarte flambée is not only typical of Alsace. It is also a classic specialty in the Black Forest. The base is a very thinly rolled bread dough, spread with crème fraîche or sour cream and topped with various ingredients. Traditionally, onions and bacon are used. There are, however, countless variations. A Black Forest tarte flambée, for example, is often topped with mountain cheese and Black Forest ham. The cook’s imagination sets the limits. Mushrooms, tomatoes, smoked duck breast or pumpkin are just a few of the options, so everyone can find a favourite. In the Black Forest it is even made as a dessert, with toppings such as almonds, lingonberries, apples, cocoa and cinnamon.